Ethernet Cable Max Distance - Something to Think About

[GeoffColl]

Actually that's been tested without any solution presenting itself - it was one of the first checks I did, as I have a PC out in the shed doing other things. Things indoors we'ren't stable, so I wondered if a PC closer would work better. That was pre-BI days using propriety software.
As ever food for thought, thank you.

 

[biggen]

So you tested the cable between two computers and had the same problem?? Am I understanding that correctly?

 

[samplenhold]

What is the camera make and model#?

 

[GeoffColl]

What is the camera make and model#?

Reolink 423 PTZ.

So you tested the cable between two computers and had the same problem?? Am I understanding that correctly?

Essentially yes.
One PC, indoors, relies on a mixture of wifi and powerline adapter to link through to the switch in the shed.
The PC, outdoors linked, as a test, directly to the switch.
The switch is a 4-port "at" compatible POE+ - also runs two other cameras Reolink 520 and an SVC3 PTZ ( but on much shorter cable ) -

The 520 first went on the end of the 100 metre cable before being exchanged with the 423. I had to add a change of POE switch, as the 423 required more oomph.

Mind, writing that, seems to point to the cable!

 

[biggen]

So the Reolinks aren't very well thought of here in this community. But I'd be willing to give it pass if you are having cables issues with other hardware which it sounds like you are. To me it sounds like cable/switch issues. Have you also tried moving to a different switch port? The real test would be to try another cable on the same switch. If you are still having issues, then try a new cable on a new switch. If still having issues that would point to a camera issue or issues somewhere upstream from the switch.

Just to confirm, there are not any wireless/power line adapters between the camera, the switch, and the end viewing station? Everything end-to-end is wired Ethernet?

 

[samplenhold]

That cam consumes up to 20 watts based on the data at the Reolink website. Does your switch provide 20 watts per port? That could be the issue right there. Just sitting w/o IR it would pull a lot less, but turn on the IR or move the cam, and you could be pulling a lot of power that your switch may not be able to provide.

 

[GeoffColl]

So the Reolinks aren't very well thought of here in this community. But I'd be willing to give it pass if you are having cables issues with other hardware which it sounds like you are. To me it sounds like cable/switch issues. Have you also tried moving to a different switch port? The real test would be to try another cable on the same switch. If you are still having issues, then try a new cable on a new switch. If still having issues that would point to a camera issue or issues somewhere upstream from the switch.

Just to confirm, there are not any wireless/power line adapters between the camera, the switch, and the end viewing station? Everything end-to-end is wired Ethernet?

Between the switch and the end viewing station there are two powerlines, to get the signal to the house router, then wifi to the viewing station.

It's a 100 metre cable and an "at" compatible switch, I don't have the luxury of being able to swap for another set. Any other cables are very much shorter and
my other switches are "af" and won't give a sufficient power.

 

[GeoffColl]

That cam consumes up to 20 watts based on the data at the Reolink website. Does your switch provide 20 watts per port? That could be the issue right there. Just sitting w/o IR it would pull a lot less, but turn on the IR or move the cam, and you could be pulling a lot of power that your switch may not be able to provide.

The switch is by YuanLey; [78W High PoE Power] Support IEEE 802.3af/at PoE power supply. The whole power is 78W, up to 30W per port. Suitable for poe power supply for multiple devices.

 

[biggen]

Between the switch and the end viewing station there are two powerlines, to get the signal to the house router, then wifi to the viewing station.

You need to get a single Ethernet cable and test with it only. Too many variables. I’d guess this is the problem.

 

[GeoffColl]

You need to get a single Ethernet cable and test with it only. Too many variables. I’d guess this is the problem.

Indeed. I agree there's too many variable to narrow down. I did 'bench' test on a 10 metre length and it was reasonably(!) stable, with the same setup through switch and router; after that I ditched reolink's software, to evaluate BI and Security Camera Pro softwares.

Between the 423 and two other Reolink cameras and support I often felt I was being a beta tester for them! Very wearing by email and time differences.

 

[Valiant]

I've come across this brand of switch that features a Long range mode (200m), but I haven't tried it - GS-5424PLC Long Range 24-Port Gigabit PoE+ Web Smart Switchwith 4 RJ45/SFP Combo Ports | Edimax Pro - EDIMAX

Whilst the Dahua ePOE solution is fantastic, you may be stuck using different cameras. I am still not clear however how these type of switches do the extended distance mode. The ports on the above unit can be configured to long range via the web interface. It doesn't appear to do anything other than set the interface speed to 10Mb/s. If your camera LAN interface is set to auto negotiate, then the link will establish itself at 10Mbit/s.

So the question arises, What is so special about this or other switches that offer extended distances ? and can any old managed switch interface be set 10 Mbit/sec and achieve the same result?. If so I'm surprised more people haven't tried.

 

[samplenhold]

What is so special about this or other switches that offer extended distances

My guess, and it is only a guess, is that if you set it for long range, it probably pumps up the voltage on the POE wires.

 

[reflection]

Are you using CCA cables or all copper? Also, what is the AWG of your cable? If you have 100m of 28AWG CCA, that might be a problem (I don't know if they even make cat6 using 28AWG wires). Just throwing that out there as another variable to look at if you are saying you have cable issues.

802.3at switches should be pumping out at least 50V. It will vary, but you want your switch to pump out at least 50V. By the time electricity reaches your camera, due to the resistance in the wire, the line loss and voltage drop will result in less than 50V. CCA cables have more resistance. The higher the AWG (which means the thinner the wire), the more the resistance.

 

[MakoMillenium]

Isn't the clue in .......when the wind blows? Maybe the data increase due to motion is the problem. Reduce the image resolution and or framerate etc and see what happens? Costs nothing to try.

 

[GeoffColl]

When the wind blows - I've since discovered the issue was there when it didn't blow!
Thank fully I appear to now have a stable situation - live preview through BI set at 1fps works adequately. I really do need to choose my next cameras more carefully......

 

[Flintstone61]

For a year of my life I ran around the Midwest for Prime Communications installing Cat5e and Cat6,rg-59, and Fiber for G.E. Healthcare, and Datascope. They wouldn't certifiy anything over 100M on UTP. We had to "certify" and document cable lengths with testing equipment. There was only 1 run ( to an Operating room jack) that was over 100M. I spent about 3 hours inside the bowels of the hospital finding the shortest path. I ended up at like 331 feet....I said F it...It's staying until somebody else wants to come and put a switch inside a drop ceiling...... My boss preferred we had 90 meters or less into the Network closets. then the cable trays and patch panels would keep max distances in spec. Actually on a hospital wing for cardiac monitoring ( icu/ER) patients, there weren't many long runs over 150 ft. ,,,,Basically from the nurses station to a closet to the patient room.

 

[rahhazar]

not sure about meters 320'ish feet is the max distance "recommended" to go over cat5/cat5e/cat6 and most likely future cat's. It's all about electricity and network signal distance. I have slapped in warehouse AP's over 400 foot runs of Cat6. However, packet loss was evident. The AP ran hand held bar code scanners so was ok to use. Would work super slow on a laptop/smartphone.
Yes, you can connect switch > 320 feet of network cable > switch > 320 feet of network cable > switch...etc. We have had customers who have various network cabinets using only Cat6 instead of fiber that do this kind of spider webbing. You can not (well, sure you could but results are unpredictable) switch > 500 feet > switch > 500 feet...etc.
Total distance for networking protocols (IP) is 328 feet from one electrical networking device to the next. So if you have a 30' patch cord -> faceplate/jack -> 328' Cat6 -> patch panel -> 15' patch cord -> switch... you are over the 328' total length since you have to include the copper in the patch cords.

The person giving out 500' easy distance is 100% wrong and is bad information. Unless the person was running dumb terminals or hand held bar scanners.
And it's not "video signal" of more than 100 meters. It's computer network digital IP protocol.

I was wondering how cities are connecting the cameras they have throughout the city if it were to slow down the connection? Do they use cat 6 or something else?

 

[sebastiantombs]

Around here, out in the "burbs" they use either fiber or dedicated RF links.